Safety razor



1943. 5 c. F. GILFORD 2,328,336

SAFETY RAZOR Filed July 12, 1945 6. I. ail/am IN V EN TOR.

JTTORNEYSH Patented Aug. 31, 1943 a UNITED STATES PATENT "OFFICE 2,328,336 SAFETY RAZOR Charles Fredrick Gilford, Concord, N. H. ApplicationJuly 12, 1943, Serial N0. 494,385

4 Claims.

In the process of shaving, if a wide swath of beard, represented by the full length of the edge of the razor blade, is to be cut satisfactorily, the

" blade must be in the best of condition.

If, however, portions of the beard canbe cut away in narrow strips, alternating with strips of beard left standing, the edge of the blade which later removes the standing strips will fill its office even though it does not have the perfection of sharpness necessary when the beard is removed in a strip the width of which is represented by the full length of the cutting edge of the blade.

Much more is the last specified statement true if, having first reduced the standing beard to parallel strips, it is further reduced to isolated tuftsby cutting through the standing strips transversely, for example, approximately at right angles thereto.

The device forming the subject matter of this application is of two-fold utility. It enables a blade to give a clean and painless shave after the blade has passed the meridian of its utility as a full-width cutter. blade, by presenting successively, narrow portions of one edge of the blade, in orderto form the ridges or tufts, and then throwing less work upon the opposite edge of the blade, in that said opposite edge is called upon to out ridges or tufts only. The invention aims to accomplish the foregoing advantages through the instrumentality of a simple auxiliary guard, the frame portion of the razor being calibrated, if desired, to locate the auxiliary guard, when it is moved longitudinally to expose a portion of the cutting edge of the razor blade for the formation of the ridges or tufts.

It is within the province of the disclosure to improve generally and to enhance the utility of devices of that type to which the present invention appertains.

With the above and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds,

the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of con-- It lengthens the life of a new Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the auxiliary guard.

The auxiliary guard shown in the present application may be used on safety razors of widely different sorts. The safety razor is shown as comprising a neck I, carrying a main guard 2,

above which islocated a cap 3, the frame of the razor including a rotatable handle 4, cooperating with the cap 3 to clamp a razor blade 5 between the main guard and the cap. The blade 5 has opposed cutting edges 6 and l. The construction is well known, and the foregoing brief description will suflice.

In carrying out the invention there is provided an auxiliary guard 8, in the form of a thin and elongated strip, the length of the guard being approximately twice the length of the razor blade 5. The auxiliary guard 8 may have some resiliency and it may be made of any preferred material. In the forward edge of the guard 8, a notch or recess 9 is formed. The guard 8 is clamped between the cap 3 and the blade 5, a narrow portion of the cutting edge 6 of the blade being exposed through the notch or recess 9, as shown best in Fig. 1.

The operator shave his face, using the exposed portion of the blade edge 6, and, in this way, the beard is reduced to a plurality of ridges. By working transversely of the ridges, they may be reduced to tufts, as hereinbefore explained, the ridges or tufts being easily removable through the instrumentality of the edge I, The operation referredto enables a blade that has been used for some time to be employed advantagei ously.

Since the edge I does not have to. cut a full width swath, it will last longer than it would otherwise. Moreover, by exposing only a small portion of the edge 6 at once, the life of the edge 6 is lengthened.

New portions of the edge 6 are exposed by shifting the auxiliary guard 8 lengthwise. The guard 3 is visibly calibrated, as shown at H), in a direction substantially parallel to the direction in which the guard is adjusted longitudinally, thereby toindicate that the recess 9 has been shifted far enough to expose an unused portion of the cutting edge 6.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. A safety razor comprising a frame, and a guard having a recess exposing a narrow portion of the cutting edge of a blade carried by the frame, the guard being mounted on the frame for adjustment longitudinally of the cutting edge,

to expose, one after another, narrow portions of the cutting edge.

-2.,A safety razor constructed as set forth in claim 1, and wherein the frame is calibrated in a direction substantially parallel to the direction in which the guard is adjusted longitudinally, thereby to indicate that the recess has been shifted far enough to expose an unused portion of the cutting edge.

3. A safety razor comprising a main guard, a cap having clamping relation to the main guard,

and an auxiliary guard clamped between the cap and the main guard, the auxiliary guard having a narrow recess in its outer edge, and being longitudinally adjustable to change the position of the recess longitudinally of the cap and the main guard.

4. An auxiliary guard for a safety razor, em bodying a, thin and elongated strip, provided in one of its edges With a recess.

CHARLES FREDRICK GILFORD. 

